İzocam Highlights the NSEB Concept

İzocam, during the 11-18 January Energy Efficiency Week, drew attention to the Nearly Zero Energy Building (NZEB) concept and presented the 2023 updates to the Building Energy Performance Regulation. Turkey's energy imports represent the most significant part of our foreign trade deficit. Highlighting that the path to reducing our excessive energy dependence lies in insulation, İzocam General Manager Murat Savcı made the following remarks on the matter: "The most important reason for Turkey's current account deficit is energy imports, which account for 20-25 percent of all imports. As Turkey, we spend billions of dollars purchasing the energy we use from abroad. 40 percent of the energy we consume is used in buildings, approximately 30 percent in industry, and the remainder in transportation and agriculture. When we look at data from Turkey's Statistical Institute, Turkey's energy import bill reached 8 billion 695 million dollars in the first quarter of 2021. Over the last 10 years, the total cost of energy imports to the country's economy has exceeded 450 billion dollars. We import more than half of the energy we consume from abroad. Given our heavy dependence on energy consumption, there is a very important path we must take regarding conservation. Buildings insulated with proper materials and appropriate thickness represent the most significant step toward energy savings. When evaluating only residential units, the contributions of insulation to our country's economy become evident. If 300,000 housing units are insulated each year in accordance with current regulations, at the end of 5 years a total of 4.8 billion cubic meters of natural gas savings would be possible. The monetary value of this saving exceeds 60 billion TL."

"We should aim for above-minimum values in insulation"

Noting that insulation carried out in compliance with regulations achieves over 60 percent energy savings in a building compared to an uninsulated building, İzocam General Manager Murat Savcı stated that our country's ultimate goal should be to achieve Nearly Zero Energy Buildings (NZEB) by insulating above the minimum values required by regulations. Noting that an important step has been taken recently and that the values in the Building Energy Performance Regulation were updated as of 1 January 2023, Murat Savcı continued his remarks as follows: "With this regulation, all buildings with a total construction area on a parcel exceeding 5,000 square meters must be constructed and operated with an energy performance class of at least 'B', and at least 5 percent of the energy to be used must be supplied from renewable energy sources. The regulation also brings an approximate increase in insulation material thicknesses used in thermal insulation, on the order of 3 cm on facades, 5 cm on roofs, and 3 cm on floors. From 1 January 2025 onwards, the total construction area threshold on a parcel will be reduced from 5,000 square meters to 2,000 square meters, expanding the scope of the nearly zero energy building concept, and the renewable energy requirement will be increased to 10 percent." [caption id="attachment_148404" align="aligncenter"] İzocam General Manager Murat Savcı[/caption]

"The scope of NZEB applications should be expanded"

Stating that to reduce our energy dependence we need regulations covering all buildings and targeting improvements of more than 20 percent in energy efficiency, Murat Savcı continued his remarks as follows: "In the European Union, since 2019 all public buildings, and from the beginning of 2020 all new buildings, have been constructed as Nearly Zero Energy Buildings (NZEB). These buildings are designed with insulation such that their annual energy consumption per square meter for heating and cooling is 30-50 kWh. In our country, with the new regulation, only a limited number of buildings with a total construction area exceeding 5,000 square meters are targeted to reduce energy consumption to only 100-120 kWh levels. Buildings insulated with proper materials and appropriate thickness represent the most significant step toward energy savings. Beyond the contribution of insulation to the country and household economy, the reduction of harmful gas emissions and its contribution to the environment cannot be overlooked. Therefore, expanding and promoting the scope of Nearly Zero Energy Building (NZEB) applications will be one of the most important legacies we leave for our future."